Killingbeck to set up a new agency

Chris Killingbeck, one of the founding partners of sales promotion consultancy FKB Carlson, left the agency at the end of last week, along with five colleagues and a key account, Yellow Pages, to set up a new sales promotion agency, Killingbeck Cloughley Johnston Baggott.

Keith Johnston was director of new projects at FKB, while Chris Cloughley and Nick Baggott were account directors. Two creatives from FKB are also joining, along with an account handler from another consultancy. Financial backing for the new agency is being provided by the directors and by Coutts Bank.

Killingbeck says that the split with FKB Carlson was an amicable one, and that “we have reached an exit agreement with them which puts some conditions on our approaching certain clients, but none on others”. He was not prepared to say which clients the new agency would be free to pitch for. Informed sources, however, suggest that FKB Carlson’s hold on the Yellow Pages account – worth around £500,000 – may be in jeopardy. Other FKB Carlson clients include Apple Computer, Birds Eye Wall’s, Burger King, Camelot and Coca-Cola Schweppes Beverages.

FKB Carlson chief executive Robert Janes says, via a secretary, that he has no comment to make.

Killingbeck founded FKB in 1982, with Brian Francis and Duncan Bain. The group was floated on the USM in 1985, ma-king paper millionaires of the three founders, but ran into difficulties in the late Eighties and went into administrative receiv-ership in August 1990. It was bought from the receivers by US marketing services group Carlson for an undisclosed sum.